Underland's Unruly Princesses: Go Ask Alice
by Princess Rosalind of Underland
Summary: The events of the first movie through the eyes of Iracebeth's two illegitimate daughters, Emberess and Rosalind. Companion to the crossover fic with Hocus Pocus. Co-written with Princess Emberess of Underland.


**A/N: So for those of you wondering what happened to our princess ocs from our crossover in the events of the movies, Ember and I have been working on that. Princess Emberess is 14 during this fic and Princess Rosalind is 11. Hope you enjoy. Love, Ember and Ros**

_Ember I_

It all started with Alice.

The very first time the pesky, golden-haired girl had ever visited Underland, I had not even been thought of. My mother, the Red Queen, had just been freshly coronated as high queen of Underland. After the death of my grandparents King Oleron and Queen Elsemere of Witzend, the crown had passed down to my mother, who was their eldest child.

When Alice had arrived, my mother had been queen for about a year and had settled into her role quite comfortably. And then one day came along little Alice. A lost little girl whose mouth was just as big as her wit. She had been led astray by the Cheshire cat and had ended up in the garden at Salazen Grum. According to my mother's right -hand-man, Ilosovic Stayne, the Knave, Alice had gotten a little too snippy with my mother, and as a punishment, she was ordered to paint red all of the roses that the gardeners had mistakenly planted white.

That had been the first time, but the second time had been much more eventful.

I had been relaxing in the courtyard, back to a tree, feet up, book in hand. My little sister, Rosalind, was across the way, practicing her croquet strokes. Mum had released us early from aiding her as she governed the land, and we had decided to take advantage of the absolutely gorgeous weather. It had been perfect outside- not too warm and not too cold. There was a gentle breeze.

Just as Rosalind had drawn back to send a ball off, a voice rang out across the courtyard.

"Girls!" cried the voice of Dahlia, the courtier with the large ears, and, unfortunately, our governess. "Girls! There you are! Come, now, your mother summons you to the throne room."

Quirking a brow, I closed my book and sighed.

"It's 'Your Highnesses'," Rosalind spat.

My little sister had always been one to assure that people behave well around us. I did have to agree with her, though, we were the Princesses, and we deserved to be addressed as such.

Dahlia curtsied. "My apologies, Princesses," she said smoothly. "Your mother requires your presence in the throne room."

I stood up from the ground and smoothed the front of my gown. "What in Underland for?" I asked.

She regained her stiff posture. "It seems that after a long procession, Ilosovic Stayne has returned."

I rolled my eyes. Ilosovic Stayne, the knave, who happened to be Rosalind's father. He was a man whom I never really could get along well with. Ever since Rosalind had been born, even when Mum was carrying her, Stayne had hardly stepped up and was barely around. I could remember vividly that when Mum was heavy with child, she was often crying, claiming loudly that Stayne didn't want her child, and that she had been a fool for laying with him at all. Mum had spent most of her pregnancy in tears, and that hadn't sat well with me at all. Now Rosalind was a blossoming young woman of eleven, and Stayne still presumed to do whatever he could to avoid her.

"As if we need to be present to see Stayne," I hissed.

"Bloody deadbeat," Rosalind muttered darkly under her breath.

Dahlia frowned. "I understand your quarrel with your father, Rosalind, but your mother requests your presence and therefore we must obligate her."

Rosalind sighed heavily and flounced off to the throne room, her golden curls bouncing with her.

I followed Rosalind smoothly, eyes forward, head up.

Anubis the dormouse was stationed outside of the throne room doors. He stood proudly, leaning against the sewing pin he used as a weapon.

"Announce us, please, Anubis," Rosalind directed him sweetly.

"Yes, Your Highness," Anubis agreed. He sheathed his tiny sword and scurried through a small hole in the baseboard of the wall. Once on the other side, everything fell quiet. Behind me, Dahlia ruffled at her skirts.

There was a small trumpeting.

"Presenting the royal Princesses of Underland," Anubis said as loud as he could manage. What with being a dormouse and all, he was rather small.

The doors peeled open slowly and Rosalind moved to her position behind me. I was the eldest so I was required to enter first, especially when it came to royal business. I strode as smoothly and ladylike as I could, so as to not draw extra attention to myself.

I had a designated wooden seat to the right of my mother's throne. To the left was Rosalind's seat. Each of our chairs were made of a heavy wood, had high backs to them and had our first initial carved into them. Mum's throne was crafted of the purest gold one could find in Underland, complete with the softest red velvet cushions. We, too, had red cushions to sit upon.

As I made my way across the throne room, the courtiers gathered before Mum, bowed lowly. As I had been taught, I paid them no mind and kept my eyes straight forward. Gracefully I turned to face them and lowered myself into my seat. To the left of my mother, Rosalind did the very same thing.

My Mother eyed me curiously, a small smile on her lips. But she said nothing. Instead she motioned for the courtiers to leave. She reached a pale hand over and patted Rosalind on the head. It was a way of assuring her that all would be well, even if she was being forced to look on as our mother welcomed her deadbeat father back to court.

Once again Anubis sounded his little trumpet. "Presenting the Red Knave, Ilosovic Stayne," he announced seriously.

The mighty doors opened behind him and he stepped out of view.

The familiar sound of Stayne's heavy black boots began to ring through the throne room as he strode smoothly down the length of the red carpet. He had a smug look on his face, yet his body was relaxed. His single eye found its way to me almost immediately. It was no secret to me that Ilosovic Stayne secretly bore an admiration for me. It was an admiration that could easily get him killed, if my mother ever found out. In truth, I despised the man for how he treated my mother whilst she was pregnant, and I despised him even more for completely ignoring Rosalind's existence.

Even after all those years, my mother was still deeply in love with the man, and after all those months he tormented her, she still took him to bed with her.

Stayne went right to Mum and pressed a soft kiss to her offered hand. Rosalind rolled her cerulean eyes dramatically.

A slight coloring of rose appeared in Mum's cheeks and she beamed for a mere second. She then stiffened her posture and reverted to her stately air.

"Ilosovic Stayne," she said aloud. "I welcome you back to court."

Stayne dropped down to his knees immediately and bowed his head. "My Queen, it is good to be home once again. I come bearing news from Marmoreal."

At the mention of Marmoreal, Mum's bottom lip twitched a little. Marmoreal was the home and reigning kingdom of Mirana the White Queen, my mother's sworn enemy, and, unfortunately, mine and Rosalind's aunt.

"What say you, Knave?" Mum asked him.

He got to his feet and reached a gloved hand into his doublet. He withdrew a scroll. "Majesty," he chided softly. "I have found the Orcaculum." He then tossed one end of the scroll across my mother's lap. It rolled past my feet and continued onward.

"That?" Mum asked. "It look so ordinary for an oracle," she observed.

Stayne's single eye scanned the surface of the Oraculum. I was surprised he possessed the capacity to locate an item such as the Oraculum.. I highly doubted Stayne's abilities, unlike Mum, who doted on them. I was pretty sure that Rosalind felt the same way about him as I did, and he was her father!

"Look here, Majesty," Stayne continued, extending a finger and placing it on the Oraculum near Mum's feet. I leaned over Mum's shoulder to see, too. "At the Frabjous Day," he added.

Rosalind's disturbed expression explained it all.

There lay a depiction of Mum's dearest pet, the Jabberwocky. Before the great beast, was a young girl with a tangled mess of hair, clad in armor. The girl bore what I immediately recognized as the Vorpal sword, high above her head, ready to strike at the beast.

Mum loved the Jabberwocky. That was no secret at all. In fact, the creature had been key to her rise to the throne. Mum had told me and Rosalind many, many stories about her ascent to her queenly state. And the notion that anyone could possibly slay it, would drive her over the edge.

"I'd know that tangled mess of hair anywhere," Mum remarked lowly. "Is it Alice?"

Rosalind and I eyed one another oddly behind Mum's head.

"I believe it is," Stayne replied. He brought a hand up to his face, almost as if he were examining.

"What's she doing to my darling Jabberwocky?" Mum asked, her pitch rising into quite the grlish tone.

"She appears to be slaying it."

Mum gasped. "SHE KILLED MY JABBER-BABY-WOCKY?!" she demanded loudly.

I noticed as Rosalind's eyes widened in horror.

"Not yet," Stayne chided. "But she will if we do not stop her."

"Find Alice, Stayne!" Mum barked. "FIND HER!"

Stayne then marched from the throne room, a handful of red knights in tow.

Unable to stand the silence that hung over the throne room, sliding my hands down my skirts, I said: "Well, that certainly was interesting."

"Whoever this Alice chick is, she's going to feel my wrath," snarked Rosalind. Alice had made her first appearance two years before she was born.

"We shall leave the spiting to Stayne, ladies," Mum said calmly. She slid from her throne. She reached a pale hand into the hidden pocket that was sewn into the side of her skirt and withdrew her sun spectacles. Placing them on the bridge of her nose, she turned to us. "But for now, let us play a few strokes."

Mum strode gracefully from the throne room, her scepter in hand. I was behind her, hands rested at my sides, eyes front. Behind me, Rosalind marched along, her nose in the air. It had been apparent since she had been old enough to speak that she had inherited Mum's bitey attitude. Rosalind practically doted on her ability to imitate Mum at whatever it was she doing.

As we made our way through the castle, we were joined by the majority of the courtiers. Soon the bunch of us were exiting through the side corridor and out pouring out into the courtyard.

Within but a few minutes, me, Rosalind and Mum were lined abreast in the very center of the courtyard. I waited patiently as both Mum and Rosalind received their flamingo playing sticks. When I received my stick, I did as Mum had taught me a long time ago, and took the bird by the neck. Skillfully I knocked the bird upside the head with the side of my foot, stunning the thing. The flamingo then assumed its stiff pose, ideal for croquet playing.

"Ready?" Mum asked us.

"Ready Mum!" Rosalind said happily.

"Ready," I whispered deeply.

The newly hired Page, a white rabbit named McTwisp lay a hedgehog ball before Mum. He then hopped off and stood beside me. Mum licked her lips curiously as she drew her bird back, and let fly. The small furry ball hurled across the courtyard and plunged into some hedges.

A round of applause rose from the courtiers.

"Splendid shot," remarked Lord Burgle, the big-bellied lord.

Mum beamed at the court as they continued to clap.

"Where's my ball?" Mum asked. "Page!" she called.

McTwisp hopped back into the playing field. "Yes, Your Majesty."

With that he disappeared off into the rose bushes.

My mind was far off from our little croquet game. It was off somewhere beyond the walls of Salazen Grum, roaming the Tulgey Wood, prancing about the vast flower fields of Witzend, even playing a magickal game of chess in Chesster. Mum was one to keep us within the castle walls as much as she possibly could. Rosalind and I both owned beautiful horses, yet we weren't allowed to take them out to ride them. If we wanted to ride, we were confined to the training ring out back the stables. Even when Mum went out on processions she left us at home, normally under the watch of Dahlia, and completely bored out of our minds.

Mum never knew just how much Rosalind and I craved adventure.

Growing impatient with the Page for taking too long, Mum huffed deeply and marched off after him. Rosalind and I looked at one another, nodded, and trotted off after her.

Why, in the mass of rose bushes, towered the tallest girl I had ever seen. Standing at least fifteen feet tall, with long, golden hair, the girl's expression bore down on us, giving me an uneasy feeling. It was clear by what little skin the bushes did cover, that she was stark naked. I immediately took hold of Rosalind and covered her eyes.

"What did you do that for!? I wanna see what's going on!" Rosalind stamped her foot and pouted.

I opened my mouth to shush her but was cut off by Mum's voice.

"And what is this?" Mum asked curiously.

Rosalind began to wriggle in my grasp.

McTwisp began to tremble. "It's a Who, Majesty, Um…."

Mum's thin eyebrows quirked. "Um?" she inquired.

Rosalind shot me a look that said really? Deciding I wasn't up for a fight, I released her.

"From Umbridge," said the large girl.

"What happened to your clothing?" Mum asked. Rosalind sniggered.

The girl licked her lips. "Why, I've outgrown them. I've been growing quite a lot lately. I tower over everyone in Umbridge. So, I've come to you, hoping you may know what it's like."

Mum's chocolate brown eyes lit up, much like they did whenever she sprouted a new idea. "My dear girl, anyone with a head that large, is welcome in my court." She turned to us. "Oh, do cloth this unfortunate soul!" Mum instructed the court. "Use the curtains, if you must, but, do cloth this enormous girl."

Rosalind frowned instantly.


End file.
